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May 21, 2008

Prov. schools chief vying for Cincinnati, Newark posts

PROVIDENCE -- Supt. Donnie Evans is one of at least 17 candidates who have applied to be superintendent of the Cincinnati public schools, according to Cincinnati School Board President Eve Bolton.

The current superintendent, Rosa Blackwell, is retiring after more than three decades as the leader of the 35,000-student district. She is paid $202,820 annually and the Cincinnati School Board said it would go higher if necessary. Blackwell will retire in July.

The Cincinnati School Board has hired Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates of Chicago to conduct the search and the firm will accept applications until early June, according to a secretary for the school board. Several school board members told the Cincinnati Enquirer that experience in a large, urban setting is a top consideration for the job.

The candidate pool includes superintendents from 11 school districts, including St. Louis, Beloit, Wis., and Sarasota County, Fla. A community advisory panel will select the semifinalists, whose names will be referred to the school board for review.

Evans is also one of three finalists for the Newark, N.J., superintendent’s position. He is joined by former Washington, D.C., Supt. Clifford Janey, and former Randolph, N.J., Assistant Supt. Ross Danis. New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine will review the finalists and appoint a replacement for outgoing Supt. Marion Bolden, who is retiring June 30.

Evans announced in late March that he would not seek another term when his contract expires in September. He withdrew his candidacy hours before the school board was prepared to vote on whether to renew his contract for another three years.

A week later, Mayor David N. Cicilline announced that a new superintendent had been chosen: Thomas M. Brady, a retired Army colonel who is interim superintendent of the Philadelphia school district. The mayor did not conduct a national search as he did with Evans. Instead, he asked the Broad Center, a national education leadership program, to recommend a list of candidates. Brady emerged as the group’s first choice.

-- Journal staff writer Linda Borg

Posted by Mike McKinney  at 4:53 PM | Permalink

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